BANGALORE: Scribes of both print and electronic media, photographers and technical staff staged demonstrations in various district headquarters in the state in protest against the brutal attack on journalists and police by advocates in Bangalore on Friday.
Members of various media associations were unanimous in their demand that the government must immediately identify the advocates who perpetrated the attack, and take severe action against them.
The scribes also expressed their anger against the police who, in the initial stages, were “mute spectators” as the advocates rained stones at the scribes, besides dragging and thrashing them. The scribes, however, expressed sympathy for the policemen who were injured in the incident.
Wearing black flags and holding placards, scribes took out silent processions from press clubs in their respective districts to DC offices, and at some places they sat on dharna to register their anger.In Mandya, press persons took out a procession under the banner of District Journalists’ Association and sat on a dharna in front of DC office. In Gulbarga, the protest was staged by the Reporters’ Guild.All over the state the scribes wore black ‘bandanna’ on their foreheads to register their protest against the ‘goonda culture’ adopted by some advocates. Reports of demonstrations have come from various places like Mangalore, Mysore, Hubli, Belgaum, Shimoga, Hassan, Karwar, Chitradurga, Raichur and Bidar. Journalists associations under various banner have decided to stage demonstrations on Saturday, even as the advocates decided to boycott the courts.